Who Carved It?
by MasterDuelistMichael
Summary: Set after 'The Math Book'. Milo, Melissa and Zack try to piece together the mystery of who made that carving on the bench outside Principal Milder's office and who Zack's secret admirer is. Easier said than done with Murphy's law in play! Zack/OC
1. The Carving

**I'm back! I've got a new Milo story for you! This one starts the day after 'The Math Book'. You know that carving the trio found on one of the benches during the episode, where Zack found out that a girl named Crystal likes him? Well...who is Crystal? It's time to take that first step! ROLL IT!**

* * *

The bell rang. Another day of school at Jefferson County Middle School had concluded. Yet something was still eating away at one Zack Underwood. Last night, while searching for Melissa's math book, Zack found a carving on a bench near Principal Milder's office. The carving came from a girl named Crystal who had carved his name in a heart with her name under it. Zack was looking at that carving, puzzled at who would do such a thing. That's when the school jinx, Milo Murphy, came in.

* * *

"Still looking at that carving, Zack?" Milo asked his friend.

"Yeah. I have no idea who this Crystal girl is!" Zack freaked.

Milo took a close look at the carving. "Well, I do know one thing - it is definitely not Melissa...or Amanda for that matter."

"How do you know it's not Melissa's writing?"

"Melissa and I gave each other birthday and Christmas cards for quite a while. Still do. We've also signed each other's yearbooks each year since 1st grade," Milo explained, taking out his 6th grade yearbook and turning to the page featuring what Melissa wrote. She would have famous landmarks as the 'M' or 'I' in her name. There were no landmarks in any of the letters in the carving, so it couldn't be Melissa. Milo then turned to the page that featured what Amanda wrote. Amanda wrote more elegantly than her peers. There was no elegant writing in the carving, so Amanda was ruled out.

* * *

"So who do you think it is?" Zack asked.

"I have no clue. But I've already taken a picture of it and sent it off to Sara. She has more advanced technology than you and I combined. Perhaps she could help us out."

"Good idea, Milo. Let's head home...our parents will freak if we're not on that bus."

Milo gave a nod as he and Zack rejoined their ginger friend Melissa and they quickly jumped on the bus home. Meanwhile, a girl around Milo, Melissa and Zack's age came out from behind the bench in front of Principal Milder's office.

* * *

"Hmm...that Murphy kid's on the case. What if my crush on the lead singer of the Lumberzacks is found out? I could be embarrassed right out of school!" she said to herself.

* * *

After the trio finished their homework, Milo, Melissa and Zack found themselves in Sara's room. She had been listening to 'I Need A Hero' by Bonnie Tyler beforehand. Sara was using her advanced handwriting analysis software to analyze the writing style of the carving.

"So, what's the sitch, Sara?" Melissa asked, referencing her favorite show - 'Kim Possible'. "Who did that carving?"

"Well, we already know that it wasn't you or Amanda. But I've cross referenced the carving with the entire female student body of Jefferson County Middle School..."

"And?"

"Well, Zack...I can safely say that your secret admirer is either a 7th or 8th grader and either a drama club student, in the chorus or choir or a cheerleader. The female student body in the 7th and 8th grade combined is about 450 students. With these parameters, I've narrowed the field down to about 70, possibly less than that. Oh, and one other thing..."

"What's that?"

"The suspect left a tube of red lipstick on the bench. None of you guys caught that, but I did. So...inputting that parameter...there. Field's now narrowed to 30 students."

"Boy, talk about a critical hit..." Melissa remarked, using a Pokemon reference.

"Let me print out the list for you now..."

With a few clicks, a sheet of paper popped out of Sara's printer. It was a list of students that fit all the parameters that Sara had input.

"Nice work, Sara!"

"Thanks, little brother! By the way...chicken parmesan for dinner - 6:00."

"Got it! You guys are welcome to stay, if you'd like. It's a Friday, after all."

* * *

"I'll call my dad!" Melissa called out.

"Same here!" Zack added.

"Sweetness!" Milo celebrated. 'The investigation continues Monday...we begin with Ms. Lydia Brooks - our first person of interest,' the jinx thought to himself.

* * *

**So how's that for an opening? The investigation begins in the next chapter! First to hit the interrogation - Lydia! See ya then and remember...IT'S MILO'S WORLD AND WE'RE ALL LIVING IN IT!**


	2. The Investigation Begins

**Well, with this coronavirus chaos going on, I figure now is a good time to get back to my MML stories, starting with this one. Here is where the investigation begins in full force. ROLL IT!**

* * *

The weekend came and went without much in the way of Murphy's law shenanigans. It was now Monday at Jefferson County Middle School. Milo and friends arrived super early in the hopes of intercepting Lydia before she could make it to her drama class. Zack was still lamenting over the now infamous 'Crystal carving'.

* * *

"Who could've done this?" Zack asked himself. "Who could've made this carving?"

"Not me!" Melissa reiterated.

"And so not me!" Amanda added. "I do have to ask...how does your sister have such advanced technology, Milo?"

"Oh...she was a Fireside Girl. Made Bonfire Brigadier and is now den mother of Troop 46231," Milo explained. This left Milo's inner circle shocked.

"I've known you since we were kids and you never told me that Sara was a Fireside Girl!" Melissa chided Milo.

"Sara swore me to secrecy, Melissa," Milo told his ginger friend. "Now, Sara gave me a list of potential girls who possibly did that carving. First up...Lydia Brooks."

* * *

Amanda flinched at hearing that name. "Lydia? You think Lydia has a thing for Zack?"

"Not sure. But there's a key piece of evidence we have to take into account - the lipstick tube. Sara caught it while she was cross-referencing the carving. Amanda, doesn't Lydia wear lipstick?"

"She does, but rarely."

"Well, let's split up, catch Lydia before she hits her drama class," Milo told his friends. The group split up and caught Lydia near the principal's office. They quickly pulled her into Ms. Murawski's classroom, where Milo began the questioning.

* * *

"What's this all about, guys?" Lydia asked. Milo then threw down a picture of the infamous carving.

"This. At 6:10 PM Thursday night, Melissa found this carving on a bench outside Principal Milder's office. We believe it was you that left that carving and hid your name so that Zack wouldn't find out that you're crushing on him!"

"Okay, I have no idea what you guys are talking about!"

"What about the tube of lipstick we found at the crime scene?" Melissa retorted. "That is yours, is it not?"

"Like, it's not, Melissa..." Lydia began. That ruled her out as a suspect. "...but, I do know whose it is."

* * *

"Spill, Lydia. Whose lipstick is this?" Amanda asked her dramatic actress friend.

"It belongs to my twin sister...Alyson. She's on the cheer squad. She was also a huge fan of the LumberZacks, but she never told anyone," Lydia explained.

* * *

"So...we're dealing with a lovestruck fan..." Amanda said in a serious tone.

"Afraid so, Amanda."

"Terrific..." Zack groaned. "Just when I thought I was done with the fan girls..."

"Cool it, Zack!" Milo called out. "Lydia, we'll need you to dig up any info you find. We have a potential girlfriend for Zack here!"

"I'm on it, Milo!"

* * *

The opening bell rang, bringing an end to the questioning and a start to the day at JCMS. Lydia quickly ran off to her drama class (which was also her homeroom), while the others settled into Ms. Murawski's class.

"Here's the plan, guys..." Melissa began. "Cheer practice is after school. Amanda and I can go in ourselves and talk to Alyson, grill her on her supposed crush on Zack."

"Just be careful, Melissa," Milo said in a worried tone. "Cheerleaders are a wild bunch..."

"Relax, Milo. We'll be fine!" Amanda reassured the jinx. The plan was now in place - Alyson Brooks, Lydia's twin sister, would be questioned after school. Hopefully then, the mystery of the 'Crystal carving' would be solved.

* * *

**So...Lydia has a twin sister! Could she be the one behind the carving? Find out next time! Remember...IT'S MILO'S WORLD AND WE'RE ALL LIVING IN IT!**


End file.
